In Myanmar, for instance, the Bank Group is financing a project to literally turn the lights on.An interest-free $140 million loan from IDA, the Bank’s fund for the poorest countries, is supporting... Show More + construction of a modern, high-efficiency electricity power plant that will produce 250% more electricity with the same amount of gas. IFC, which concentrates nearly half of its investments in the poorest countries, is considering investments in new private-public power projects aimed at increasing additional electric power capacity to around 300MW over the next 12 months. And last month, at the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings, Myanmar said it would join MIGA so foreign direct investment into Myanmar will be eligible for the agency’s political risk insurance.The electricity project is part of larger effort to support reforms, including transparency and accountability in the extractive industries sector, along with community-driven development empowering people in Myanmar’s rura Show Less -

Climate change impacts are often experienced as water-related events, such as flooding, drought, or extreme storms. Extreme weather events associated with a changing climate carry both economic and human... Show More + costs. Economic losses from recent floods in Thailand, Pakistan, and Australia were devastating: in Thailand alone, losses due to flooding in 2011 resulted in losses of approximately $45 billion, or about 13 percent of GDP.When considering the human costs of climate change, it will be those least able to adapt – the poor and most vulnerable – that will be hit the hardest.“Looking forward, it is clear that water management practices of the past are no longer adequate. Transformations in behavior, institutions, and policies will be at the center of governments', companies', and our attention,” said Rachel Kyte, the World Bank’s vice president for sustainable development.Poor sanitation conditions exacerbated by extreme weather eventsRoughly 2.5 billion people lack access to sanitation an Show Less -